It’s an all-KCII area matchup tonight when Hillcrest Academy and Highland get together for Southeast Iowa Superconference baseball and softball. The Hillcrest softball team was 0-12 a season ago, hitting .158 as a team, led by Sarah Miller who is back for her senior year after hitting .300 as a junior. Esther Hughes also returns after hitting .265 last season. The Ravens had a 7.77 ERA a year ago with Leah Bontrager throwing each inning.
Highland softball was 9-7 last year. The Huskies hit .324 as a team and return eight players from that high powered offense, led by Dani Laughlin and her .600 average as a freshman with 33 hits and eight RBI. The Huskies finished with a 3.53 ERA and return everyone who threw a pitch last season, led by Grace Batcheller and her 63 innings of work with a 7-4 record and 3.52 ERA. These two teams met twice a season ago with Highland sweeping the series by 12-0 and 13-1 scores.
It’s an all-KCII area matchup Saturday afternoon in Riverside when the Hillcrest Academy Raven boys basketball team travels to meet the Highland Huskies. The Ravens come into the game with an overall record of 7-5 after a 56-39 loss at Wapello on Friday night. In the loss, the Ravens were led by Eli Ours 17 points. On the year, Ours leads Hillcrest at 16 points per game, fourth in the Superconference North Division. He also has a team best five assists and three steals per contest. John Hughes leads the Ravens on the glass with five boards per game.
Highland comes in with an overall mark of 2-5, 2-3 in the Superconference North. In their last recorded action they beat Lone Tree Tuesday 58-54 behind 15 points from Tristan Stokes, 12 from Chase Schultz and 10 from Connor Grinstead. On the season, Highland is led by Stokes at 11 points per contest. He also has the team lead with three steals and two assists. Trevor McFarland is best on the team at five boards per game. These two team
The Highland boys and girls basketball teams step outside of the Superconference tonight when they travel to North English to meet the English Valleys Bears. The Highland girls come in with an overall record of 1-3. Last time out the Huskies were beaten at Pekin Tuesday 54-33. For the year, Highland is led by Dani Laughlin at 20 points per game. She also leads the team with six steals and three assists per contest. Sarah Burton leads Highland on the boards with nine rebounds per game.
English Valleys is 2-5 overall with a loss to Montezuma 63-27 on Tuesday. For the year, the Bears are led by Mia Ayers at eight points per game. She also has a team best eight rebounds per contest. Ayers, Kaeley Axmear and Carly Stanerson each average two assists and two steals per game to lead the team. These two teams met last season with Highland taking a 44-39 win.
The second half of the season will start up Monday for a pair of boys’ basketball teams when Columbus Community hosts Highland for a Southeast Iowa Super Conference showdown.
The Wildcats seek their first win of the year after an 0-7 pre-Christmas record. Mason Hodges has been a bright spot with 8.8 points and 7.2 rebounds a night. Owen Watson adds 5.6 points and six boards a game. The Huskies had a late start to their season and sit at 0-2. Plenty of new faces surround this Highland squad and in the small sample size, Trevor McFarland has led the way with 9.5 points and six rebounds a contest. Senior Tristan Stokes adds 7.5 points an evening. The series has been dominated by Highland in the last decade with a 17-game win streak over Columbus dating back to 2011.
The Highland basketball teams were back in action on Thursday on the road against Danville and the Bears swept the doubleheader.
In the girls’ game, Highland trailed just 29-22 at the break, but a 19-3 third quarter in favor of Danville set up a 62-39 final score. Sophomores Abbi Stransky and Dani Laughlin led the Huskies with 10 points a piece. The Highland boys found themselves down 26-6 after eight minutes and the Bear momentum never stopped with a 66-27 final. Brenton Bonebrake knocked down a pair of triples to finish with a team-high 10 points. Trevor McFarland added eight points and seven boards.